Image of Islam in the West | Complete Essay

Post author:Mureed Hussain Jasra
Post published:February 2, 2021
Post category:Important English Essays for CSS

OUTLINE

Introduction

(a) Questions: rise in anti-Islam hatred

(b) The advent of Islam: dissipation of bleakness from evil-torn Arab

(d) Revamping Muslim unity: need of the hour

What is the image of Islam in the West?

(a) Perpetrator of terrorism worldwide;

Incidents of 9/11
Rise of ISIS and other jihadist groups

(b) Fundamentalistic beliefs;

Iranian Revolution of 1979
Arrival of radical Islam

(d) Against emancipation of women ;

Compulsory veiling
Huge gender parity gap

(e) Intolerance towards other faiths.

Misunderstood concept of Jihad
Minority persecution in Muslim countries

(f) Threat to the Western culture;

Divergence in Islamic and Western values
Continuing increase in Muslim population

(g) Promoter of human rights violation;

LGBT rights
Stringent criminal procedures

(h) Prevalence of sectarianism: Shia-Sunni feuds

(i) Fault lines for future wars : Clash of civilizations

Factors Responsible for the Development of False Image of Islam in the West

(a) Orientalism – Western political agenda to prevent Muslim domination

(b) Emergence of far-right white supremacists ;

Donald Trump’s victory in the US elections
Brexit vote

(d) Little advancement in science and technology

(e) Deteriorating bond of Muslim brotherhood : Saudi-Iran rivalry

(f) Media warfare against Islam

Consequences Of Prevailing Negative Image of Islam in the West

(a) Lately constructed discourse of Islamophobia :

Christchurch attack on two mosques during Friday prayer
Ban on veil in European states

(b) Victimization of Muslim minorities around the globe :

Rohingya community of Myanmar
Chinese internment camps for detaining Uighur Muslims

(d) Pressure on Muslim majority states for unlimited participation in the war on terror.

Recommendations to address Xenophobic Narrative against Islam

(a) Abridging gap between theory and practice : inculcating true essence of Islamic dogmas

(b) Role of clergy in overhauling Muslim unity

(d) Capacity building of OIC institutions

(e) Setting up cultural exchange programs

Conclusion

Essay

Image of Islam in the West

How does the West react to the presence of Muslims and their belief? Is Islam causing phobic sentiments, or spreading hatred among the westerners? Has the West really become obsessed with Islam, leading to Islamophobia? The Gallup statistics of 2011 and beyond after the 9/11 incident are almost all in the affirmative, showing that anti-Islam rant and anti-Muslim prejudice is witnessing a steep rise. However, the discursive practices prevalent in the individual western countries paint a different picture of Islam as a religion of peace and prosperity. Taking the cue from this, a little glance at the history shows that for thousands of years, Arabs wandered in the darkness of ignorance, until Islam landed with a bang, causing dissipation of evil practices; injustice, tyranny, sorcery, revenge wars and feminine persecution. It emerged as an epitome of peace and harmony amidst that oppression. Later, following the footsteps of Muhammad (S.A.W), Muslims ruled the world for years until their ultimate decline and subsequent colonization by the Western powers. The colonization project had the backing of the academic study of Islam by western scholars, belittling Islamic values. Resultantly, numerous tomes by the orientalists hit the book shelves during the 18^th century through 19^th and first half of the 20^th century. The ways in which westerners have seen Muslims and Islam is largely through these orientalist lenses, showing the western construction of non-western cultures as “alien, backward, uncivilized and passive” in Edward Said’s words. Consequently, the West has identified a new enemy in the form of radical Islam, stereotyping of Islam to see Muslims as fundamentalists and terrorists. Additionally, Islam is viewed against the emancipation of women, intolerant toward other religions, and a threat to Western values. Also, orthodox mindset, sectarianism, human rights violations and potential fault lines for future wars are some other fallouts associated with and about Islam in the West. These negative connotations associated with Islam are not a coincidence, but a highly organized and strategic propaganda for specific political gains. Rise of alt-right white supremacists, Muslim immigrants increase in Europe, media warfare and deteriorating bond of the Muslim brotherhood are some other factors responsible for the proliferation of anti-Muslim sentiments. Subsequently, the Muslims around the world are facing acute problems resulting from these biased perspectives. Amongst those, Islamophobia, persecution of Muslim minorities and immigration restrictions are the most detrimental and lethal ones. Contrarily, Islam is nothing but a religion of peace and prosperity. Incidences of the few zealots should not be confused with the beliefs of the majority. To combat this phenomenon, clergy and the OIC must play their role to end false preconceived notions regarding Islam, along with the commencement of interfaith dialogues and cultural exchange programs. This piece, after elucidating contemporary image and image building about Islam in the West, is going to shed light on the causes and consequences of the prevalent anti-Muslims stances followed by recommendations to combat this phenomenon.

First, the West falsely accuses Islam of perpetrating global terrorism. Islam has been facing problems in upholding its fundamental principles since long. However, following 9/11 WTC attacks, Islam has come under unprecedented and unimaginable social scrutiny, proving libelous for the Muslims. Down the road, the rise of Al Qaida followed by ISIS, the Taliban and factional jihadists have further reinforced the western view about Islam. That is why Pakistan is also facing a stringent action from the Financial Action Task Force to be placed in the grey list, and Iran in the black list on the same count. As per the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA) Report, Germany’s public opinion widely sees Muslims behind the crimes despite lack of evidences. This construction of Islam in the West is always negative; be it is of the faith, or of the followers of this faith.

The Western views about Islam having fundamentalistic beliefs is the second important factor. In fact, three major events in the Islamic world have caused this discourse in the West; Khomeini’s Islamic Revolution of Iran in 1979, siege of the grand mosque of Mecca by hundreds of fundamentalists, and USSR’s invasion of Afghanistan, which led to the creation of the Taliban. All these events have a common message; radical Islam with its fundamentalist beliefs is proving a formidable force for the West to confront in the future. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s security general, in his public statement of 1995, claimed that Muslim fundamentalism was and has been a serious threat, since it represents terrorism, religious fanaticism and exploitation of social and economic justice. Thus, the Western perception about Muslims has negative connotations about the Muslims having fundamentalistic beliefs.

Third, the West also believes that Islam encourages orthodoxy. They argue that Muslims are averse to modernity and reforms, supposing that Islam does not support adaptation to the modern dynamics. They build their narratives due to Muslims’ strict and literal scriptural interpretations and their blind and literal praxis. Such moves lead them to think that Islam also discourages innovation, prohibiting debate on Islamic civilization and values. However, to the western dismay, Islam continuously accepts adaptations to the new dynamics through the concepts of ijtehad and ijma. Hence, the western perception about the orthodoxy of Islam is a false narrative.

The West opinion that Islamic injunctions prohibit the emancipation of women is their fourth logic. They point to the compulsory veiling in some Islamic states such as Saudi Arabia and Iran with some restrictions women face when getting education or working in the field. Malala Yousafzai, a social activist of education, is considered a victim of terror in her quest for education. In addition, Pakistan is the second worst country in the world in terms of gender parity, ranking at 148^th out of 149 countries as per Global Gender Gap Index 2018 Report released by the World Economic Forum. Adding further fuel to the fire, contribution of Muslim women in the global socioeconomic sphere is also minimal. Therefore, the West views Islam as an anti-feminine belief.

The fifth factor is that the West believes that Islam is intolerant toward other faiths. This prejudice is based on the misconception about its concept of jihad. The western scholars and academics vociferously accuse Islam of waging jihad against the infidels for spreading Islam by force. The majority of them are of the view the major driving force behind the proliferation of Islam were holy wars against the non-believers, which seems a wrong understanding of history, or misinterpretation of historical texts. Actually, Islam legitimizes jihad only in defense. In China and Myanmar, large Muslim communities are living peacefully without causing war against the states. Although terror and suicide bombings are branded as jihdists’ weapons, they are just a mockery of the concept of jihad, which, actually means a struggle. These efforts are just to tarnish the image of Islam.

The westerners often consider Islam a threat to western culture and present it as another factor for their Islamophobia. Both Islamic and western values related to economy, politics and society are poles apart. America and Europe believe in the stratification of society, whereas Islam propagates classlessness. The western idea of liberty and individual freedom does not find favorable support in the Muslim countries. That is why Saudi Arabia is accused of concocting Jamal Khashoggi’s execution to suppress dissidents, which is against the norms of freedom of expression. The polls of Pew Research show a terrifying view of the swelling Muslim population to the West that they will be 1.8 Billion 2050 with 10% Europeans, crossing the Christianity as the largest religion of Europe and the world. This reality has paranoid the West and western thinkers alike, just imagining that Islam may provide an alternative to their years old-political systems.

Seventh logic is that the West also thinks that Islamic beliefs promote human rights violations. Prohibition of alcohol and compulsory hijab for girls are cited as two examples about infringement upon the basic human rights. Strict laws against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community also raise public outcry against Islam. The hanging of several homosexuals in Iran, and seven other Muslim states are presented as cases to provide evidences. It is also stated that stringent criminal punishments such as beheading, stoning, amputation and lashing in Saudi Arabia are old-fashioned, barbaric and inhuman. In fac, Saudi Arabia was one of the states that abstained from signing Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Moreover, the Economist Democracy Index 2018 ranked Saudi Arabia at 159^th out of 167 states as an authoritative regime. As a bastion of Islam, Saudi Arabia is considered a prime example of the violators of human rights. Hence, there are always fingers pointing at Islam having ordered or taught such a system.

Eighth factor is that the West believes that Muslim states are facing waves of sectarianism. Saudi-Iran rivalry is a case in point. In Yemen and Syria, both states are fighting a bloody proxy war. Pakistan, too, has become a punching bag between the boxing match of both countries, representing the two irreconcilable perspectives of Islam. Other than that, within the Muslim states, sectarian feuds have taken thousands of lives. On account of habitual extreme views even on the simple issues of moon sighting have further reinforced this western view. Hence, as per western logic of witnessing the evidences lead to culpability, Islam is accused for these fractures and fissures in its own religious body.

Ninthly, the West has supposedly terms Islam as a fault line for future wars. The concept has emerged in post-Cold War era in an article “Clash of Civilizations” penned by Samuel P. Huntington, and it continues to manifest its propositions in myriads of ways. This states the places where Muslims live near other religions, the conflict is a likelihood of that proximity. This is partly due to the conflict-prone nature of Islam, which claims to be the only true religion and monotheistic, and partly because Islam emphasizes missionary work more than mundane assistance. One of the key features of his article was the phenomenon of the kin – country syndrome in which states belonging to one civilization support the members of their own civilization involved in conflict with some other country while in the midst of another civilization. The westerner invasion of Iraq in 1992 is a such an example, when Saddam Hussain tried to exploit it converse to the United States, which succeeded in rallying around the western alliance to crush his forces. Thus, western states unanimously agree on the tendency of Islam to be the major source of hostility and future wars.

Following the explanation of the reasons of the western perspective about Islam and its tenets, the factors causing these perspectives have been analyzed below.

To begin with, Orientalism is the major cause of anti-Muslim sentiments in the West. Right after European colonization of the Muslim territories, endeavors started to portray Islam from the perspective of Orientalism – an epistemology that deals with the exaggerated and distorted view of the eastern people, specifically, the Arab Muslims. This perspective led to the artificial boundary of ‘we’ versus ‘they’ binary. Louis Massignon, H.A.R Gibb and E. W. Lane are prominent orientalists known for carving this epistemological boundary. Edward Said, in his book, Orientalism, explains how this concept evolves through cultural domination of the orient for the justification of the colonization project. The pejorative and denigrating clichés were used to represent the Arabs, showing them cruel and violent people a la Japanese who are associated with Karate, as terrorism with Muslims. Hence, Orientalism is the major factor casting Islamic in such a negative light in the West.

Also, the emergence of far-right white supremacists has led to the distorted the image of the Muslims in the West. According to a study by the European Policy Information Center, one among the five Europeans (a total 55.8 million) voted for a populist party in 2016 and 2017. Resultantly, right wing parties have come into power. Such as The Alternative for Germany (AFD) won 25 percent of the votes in German state elections, Austria’s Freedom Party took 40 out of 183 seats in the National Congress, Great Wilders took a considerable lead in Netherland, and British Prime Minster Theresa May won elections that led to the Brexit vote. All those politicians, along with Donald Trump, used anti-Muslim rhetoric to bolster their popularity among their voters. In addition, far-right militias, too, were responsible for 73% of the extremist murders in America between 2009 and 2018 as per Anti-Defamation League’s estimates. Despite this threat, white supremacist terrorism has recategorized itself into a racially motivated extremism. This new nomenclature reflects the Trump Administration’s ideological commitment to enabling the white supremacy. And this can only happen with the Islam bashing drive.

Similarly, the West sees Muslim migrants with skepticism, leading to the same impressions about their faith. Adding fuel to the fire, Islam is growing even faster than before in Europe. As per Pew Research Center’s estimates, the Muslims make up 4.9 % of the European population as of 2016 with Cyprus has the largest share of the Muslims up to 25.4 % followed by France, 8.8%, and Germany, 6.1 %. In the coming decades up to 2050, this percentage will be more than double, depending upon the future immigration rules. Hence, there exist apprehensions of the hegemony of the Islamic culture. Insider Monkey, too, has published a report, citing the United Kingdom, Italy and Germany as the most racist, Islamophobic European countries where 47%, 51% and 53% of the respondents from each country respectively agreed that they did not want Muslims in their respective countries. Therefore, the current anti-Islam propaganda has its roots in the growing number of Muslim immigrants in the West.

Furthermore, little advancement in science and technology in the Muslim majority states has also contributed to this growing anti-Islamic prejudice. On average, countries with predominantly Muslim population are poorer than the rest of the world, and technologically highly backward. The average GDP per capita income of 57 member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation is $ 5,101.78 that is three times lesser than the global average of $12,820.29. None of their educational or research institutions finds a place among the top 100 in the world. When a country is technologically zero, and cannot manufacture even needles, how it can challenge a technologically advanced country and confront its might. Herein lies the issue that anti-Islam rant has also some of the impacts of this backwardness advancement in science and technology.

Besides this, the deteriorating bond of the Muslim brotherhood is another major contributor to the western narrow-minded anti-Islamic view. The Islamic world is witnessing political and religious fissures. Politically, it is seeing divisions into two blocks; westerners and conservatives. The pro-west camp is keen to implement the western political order, whereas the opposite camp intends to adopt the Islamic political system. Religiously, Shia-Sunni schism is another source of disunity and conflict, specifically, in the Middle Eastern region. Representing opposing sides, Saudi Arabia and Iran have jumped into a rivalry that has surfaced in almost every regional crisis, inviting anti-Islamic intrigues and fueling Islamophobics to rant vociferously. Even within Sunni sect, several sub-sects like Wahabism, Deoband and Ahle-Sunnat-ul-Jamat keep grudges against each other because of interpretations of the Islamic values. This utterly chaotic situation further distorts the image of Islam in the western minds.

Along with all these, the media is another contributor to anti-Islamic bigotry. Stereotyping and misconception due to prejudice and ignorance have played a critical role in the cultural production of anti-Islamic knowledge. As McNelly & Izcaray, two orientalists, argue that “The mass media can contribute to people’s understanding, or misunderstanding, of each other’s countries.” Profiteering and viewership competition has made the Muslims and Islam an easy scapegoat. For example, when an American Christian citizen, Timothy Mcveigh, bombed Oklahoma City Federal building in 1995, killing 167 people, the media refrained from labelling him a Christian terrorist contrary to such incidents where a Muslim is involved. Social media tools have become another weapon for anti-Muslim rant. Brenton Tarant, a white nationalist, live-streamed his killing spree in the recent New Zealand mosques on Facebook for almost 17 minutes. According to a study conducted by OnePath Network, an Islamic media outlet based in Sydney, once every second day in 2017, there was a front page of the Australian newspapers engaged in the demonization of Muslims, which shows the proliferation of anti-Muslim discourse.

Orientalism, increasing migrations of Muslim and emerging far-right politics etc., are some factors causing anti-Muslim western behavior. Whereas, Islamophobia, persecution of the Muslims and immigration restrictions are some of the issues Muslims are facing as a result of the prevalent image of Islam in the West.

Whereas xenophobia coupled with growing anti-Islamic animosity is concerned, it has resulted in growing Islamophobia, defined as irrational hatred and fear. The killing of 50 Muslims in New Zealand attack of AlNoor mosques, and anti-Islamic cartoon competition in Netherland and Denmark are evidences that show a rising trend of Islamophobia. Adding fuel to the fire, France became the first European country to ban public veiling of the Islamic women in April 2011, while other states following suit are Belgium, Austria, Netherland, Spain and Denmark. The Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) presented a worse picture on anti-Muslim hate crimes in America, having witnessed 91% increase in the first six months of 2017. Recently, the AFD party in Germany launched a provocative ad campaigns, featuring a blend of Islamophobia and misogyny. In other words, Islamophobia is a resultant feature of anti-Islamic western discourse.

In addition to it, persecution of Muslim minorities is another ramification of western anti-Muslim sentiments. And it is not limited to Europe, as it is happening even in Asia. The case of Rohingya Muslims of Myanmar is a prime example of such a persecution. Myanmar Government has systematically stripped them of their citizenship. And this did not stop even after the democratic elections and the assumption of the powers by the new dispensation. To make the matter worse, it has become institutionalized as the incumbent government legislated fresh measures, the four race and religion laws, to victimize the Rohingya community. In the wake of the 2017 attack of the government on marginalized community, the UN human rights chief, Zeid Raad Al Hussain, accused the Myanmar military of ethnic cleansing. Beijing, too, is not left behind in waging an unprecedented crackdown on Uighurs – a major Muslim ethnic minority residing in the western region of Xinjiang – by detaining them in internment camps where up to 1 million are reportedly subjected to psychological and mental torture. Therefore, it can be said that with the proliferation of false notions of Islam, victimization of the Muslim minorities has intensified.

Furthermore, intensifying anti-Islam bias has led non-Muslim countries, specifically, Europe to slap restrictions or outright bans on specific entrants. A week after taking office in Jan 2017, President Trump signed an executive order 13769 of suspending the US Refugee Program, blocking travelers from several Muslim majority states, and the Supreme Court, too, upheld it with 5-4 majority decision. Resultant rejections of the Muslim visas to the United States in 2018 were 37,000 as per Al-Jazeera news agency report. According to the Boston Globe Poll, 71% blacks and 57% whites agreed about Muslim intensive security checks before boarding airplanes. Briefly put it, anti-Islamic rant has intensified immigration restrictions against the Muslims.

Moreover, mounting pressure for anti-terror measures to be taken up by the Muslim states is another result of this measure. The West argues that Muslims as a backward and ignorant community is engaged in terror acts, making it incumbent upon the Muslim states to take up measures and curb this seeming menace. Renowned economist, Dr. Hafiz Pasha, in his book, Growth And Inequality – Agenda For Reforms states Pakistan has suffered substantial losses amounting to $252 Billion up to 2018 in its fight against terror. In addition, more than 70,000 people have perished in this senseless war. However, in return Pakistan has got a minuscule portion from the United States and the NATO allies as compared to losses that Pakistan’s economy suffered, which is eight times higher. It means Muslims are facing undue pressure of this anti-Islamic brouhaha of terror acts.

These problems faced by the Muslims due to anti-Islamic bias are intensifying further with the robust mechanisms in place in the European countries. The need of the hour is that these restrictions must not be discriminatory against the followers of Islam only. The recommendations in this connection may alleviate the Muslim fears about the mounting pressure.

The first recommendation is that to fight xenophobic anti-Islam narratives, bridging the gap between theory and praxis needs to be put at the top of the priority list. First, the Muslim state should think internally and then outwardly. Internally means to practice Islam and Islamic values of tolerance, forgiveness, kindness, honesty and sacrifice. However, the situation is quite contrary to this. As per the Corruption Perception Index 2018 reported by Transparency International, Pakistan is the 117^th least corrupt nation out of total 180 countries. Various other studies suggest that most religious a Muslim state is, the most corrupt its people are. Not only this moral depravity, the Muslim countries demonstrate diplomatic and collective failures, too, causing embarrassment to each other on international forays. That is why Muslims and the Muslim states need to bridge this gap between theory and praxis.

Second, clergy can play a crucial role in suppressing false anti-Islamic sentiments. However, Muslim clerics take a roundabout. Instead of reforming Islamic ways, they rather denigrate other religions and cultures. The same game continues against other Islamic sects. Instead of creating differences, fissures and animosity, the clerics need to bridge the differences and create consensus among Muslims. The consensual strategy, then, needs to be launched to counter anti-Islamic narratives and Islamophobic perspectives. In this context, a conference was held in 2018 in Istanbul with the collaboration of the OIC where two dozen renowned religious scholars lectured on the issue. Causes of prevalent biased attitudes were identified to be addressed collectively, the reason that the conference was themed as “Fault Lines and Perils Facing Muslim Societies: The Challenges of Sectarianism, Secularism, Nationalism and Colonization.” In other words, religious scholars need to bring the true face of Islam instead of sharpening critical outlooks against other cultures, religions and sects.

Third, commencement of interfaith dialogues can help reshape the true perception of Islam in the West. Interfaith dialogues refer to cooperative, constructive and positive interaction between the followers of other religious traditions. It aims at promoting understanding and harmony between different beliefs to increase the likelihood of the acceptance of other faiths, and to create a sense of coexistence. It will rather provide a platform to change the anti-Islamic views of the world, particularly, in the West. It is, indeed, the success of the Muslims that February, every year, has been declared as a UN World interfaith Harmony Week. As Hans Kung, president of the Global Ethic Foundation, aptly states, “There will be no peace among nations without peace among religions. There will be no peace among religions without dialogue among the religions.” Hence, the interfaith platform can be manipulated to counter anti-Islamic views.

Fourthly, the OIC endeavors in presenting true image of Islamic values is of paramount importance now. The OIC offices can augment efforts through its country offices to counter Islamophobia and related issues via informally working with the local Muslim communities. The OIC institutions, specifically, the Islamophobia Observatory and Sawt Al-Hikmal (Voice of Wisdom) Center to Combat Terrorism are addressing these phenomena of Islamophobia and terrorism quite successfully. In 2018, 11^th OIC observatory report on Islamophobia has raised the points that anti-Islam hatred is impeding Muslim coexistence. To put it briefly, the OIC should keep playing its role in managing the true vision of Islam in the West and should step up these efforts further.

Lastly, cultural exchange programs can also help change the negative image of Islam in the West. The Middle East Studies Association (MESA) is a private organization involved in bringing scholars, educators and academics together to mull over the ways to counter anti-Muslim discourse. Recently, Michigan State University has also announced to host an international conference on Islam, environmental science and conservation, which aims to foster interfaith understanding to remove the negative image of Islam. As Aldous Huxley has said, “To travel is to discover that everyone is wrong about other countries.” It means that such cultural integrated projects can help people come to know each other by their personal interaction instead of by the media or literature. Such moves can also help dispel anti-Islamic impressions among the western people.

In a nutshell, the Muslim world is currently confronting myriads of internal and external challenges. Externally, the most pervasive challenge is the negative image of Islam in the West. Anti-Islamic lobbyists have launched a nefarious campaign to undermine the swiftly growing influence of Islam, equating it with terrorism and intolerance. Islam, its founder and its adherents are repeatedly subjected to constant censure by Islamophobics, the reason that Muslims are shown as fundamentalist, orthodox and rigid. Strict laws against homosexuals and harsh criminal punishments in the Muslim states, too, reinforce this perception. This hatred has instigated pernicious type of Islamophobia, which is not an abstract phenomenon, but a highly organized socio-political construct of a political and social entity – Islam. It aims the gradual dehumanization of the Muslim population for ulterior motives. As a result, persecution of Muslim minorities has become a routine. Many European countries create problems for the Muslim women about veil and headscarves at public places. The emergence of alt-right groups and white supremacists, increasing Muslim migration and sensitization in media have further fanned the xenophobic sentiments of the Western countries. At this critical juncture, the Muslims should leave behind their personal differences and work collectively to educate the West about the true values of Islam. Lincoln’s advice that “A house divided cannot stand on its own” is perhaps about the Muslims. Also, the scholars and the OIC, in this connection, can play a decisive role to dispel such anti-Islamic impressions. The use of interfaith platforms, dialogues and cultural exchange programs, too, can remove such misconceptions. In this connection a Churchillian maxim that “the era of procrastination of half measures of soothing and baffling expedients, of delays is coming to its close. In its place we are entering a period of consequences” perhaps shows us clearly that if such measures to address these anti-Islamic misconceptions are delayed, Muslims may have never an opportunity to stand up against this prejudice and resultant hatred.

Essay

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